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UFC on Xbox Live begins PPV service with UFC 143, free UFC RIO offered as apology

Microsoft embarrassed itself when it told UFC fans to "seek alternate means" of watching UFC 141. The company has issued an apology, free access to the next fight, and has said the app will be available for 'paying customers' with UFC 143.

Microsoft embarrassed itself when it told UFC fans to "seek alternate means" of watching UFC 141. Technical issues plagued the live streaming event, preventing eager fans from watching the game, which would normally cost $45. Microsoft has since apologized for the outage, and is currently distributing apology emails.

"We are offering UFC RIO on Xbox LIVE for free and a month of Xbox LIVE Gold membership to all who were affected by the outage," a Microsoft representative told us. "Our hope is that this gesture conveys our sincere apologies, and helps restore confidence in our customers and fans."

UFC RIO: Aldo vs. Mendes will be available on January 14th. However, regular users of the Xbox Live app will not be able to access the stream. Instead, Microsoft notes that the application will be open to "paying fans" beginning with UFC 143.

Microsoft has a lot to prove with its "second chance" stream of this weekend's game. "I was furious over this debacle," Shacker vmf214havok said last week. "Poor planning, poor management, and a piss poor infrastructure was too blame."

After such a shoddy launch, will fans reconsider using Xbox Live, or will they stick with their cable providers?